Post navigation

How & Why to Get Started with Google Analytics Even if You’re Not Ready

For many business owners, Google Analytics is one of those technical terms that hovers out there, intimidatingly. It’s something you know you should be keeping up with better—like flossing or meditating—but it’s easier just to avoid it altogether.

But waiting has its pitfalls. Check out our 3 reasons not to wait any longer.

Reason #1

You won’t be able to improve your organic reach.

Here’s the bottom line: If you own a website, Google Analytics should be an active part of your marketing management routine. Here are a few of the important questions it answers, according to blogger and social media expert Kristi Hines1:

How many people visit my website?

Where do those people live?

Which marketing tactics drive the most traffic to my website?

Which pages on my website are the most visited?

How many visitors have I converted into leads or customers?

Reason #2

Every day you wait, you’re losing critical data.

It’s crucial to set up Google Analytics before you go live on management software or a new website or – if it’s too late for that – NOW! This ensures all tracking is in place from the first day of registration. Comparing half a season or only some of your sessions isn’t as useful later.

Our expert Digital Marketing Consultants* often find that organizations have questions about data that doesn’t exist. Google Analytics isn’t like an omniscient being that sees the full scope of past, present, and future clicks and page views. It can only go back to the day you connected your web properties to its tracking protocols.

Once you’ve done that, it starts tracking the present, which quickly becomes the past. With enough past and present data, you can then start to see trends and project the future.

Reason #3

We’re here to help.

We’ve found that just about everyone—even someone who’s somewhat web-savvy—finds it difficult to run a business while learning or staying on top of Google’s ever-changing SEO and digital marketing algorithms. You may need only help with triage: figuring out which next step is the most actionable, practical and impactful for where you are, or which data to watch. Or you may need a full-on overhaul, starting from scratch.

Whichever one describes you (or if you’re somewhere in-between), dip your toe into the digital marketing waters with our…

*As a service to ACTIVE customers, our free Digital Marketing Consultants are certified in Google Analytics and hold a host of other analytics certifications. Your dedicated consultant works with you at whatever level of skill you have to drill down to the specifics you want to understand about how people are engaging with your digital properties.

About Gina Calvert

Gina Calvert is the Senior Marketing Writer for ACTIVE Network, providing marketing and business resources for active lifestyle organizations across a range of markets, including government, nonprofits, camps, schools and endurance events, for more than six years.